Much to be learned
Thanks Wally Olson, for your excellent comment (Empire, Dec. 12) on Alaska's economy! Yes, our economy is more than timber, fishing, mining and oil. How unimaginative it would be to think otherwise. Theater, arts, books and other forms of creativity are more than diversions or entertainment, they are viable forms of strengthening economy. And people all around the world are truly interested in the Alaska fable, its mystique, and more, the Alaska Native culture.
There are many things to learn from the Native community, and one of the most important, I would say, was how we handled our social-economic relations. Our present economy is centered around addiction. Tobacco, alcohol and drugs are only the most obvious, but I say there are other forms of addiction, in greed and our forms of entertainment. What do you get people to come back for, if not addiction? There is another way, to center our economy around knowledge and ideas. The Tlingit people right here, the ones who've beaten the hard-hitting addiction of alcohol and the lazy lifestyle, have much to teach us.
I've always sort of felt that Alaska will actually need an economic crisis before coming through with real change. It's all preventable, but that just seems the reality. Well, let the crisis come on, with our chosen leadership. In the meantime, let's gain knowledge, figure out how to healthily boost our economy, how to share knowledge, how to exchange goods, money and ideas in a stronger way than today. Then a new stronger, healthier form of leadership will come for Alaska when its most needed.
Ishmael Hope
Juneau